Electric-translating device



All@ 30, 1927.

w. M. BRUCE, JR

ELECTRE TRANSLATXNGDEVICE Filed April G, 1923 m A fw l Patented Aug. 30,1927.

WILLIAM in. BRUCE, Jn.,

vLunari on srnmerrnnn, onIo.

ELECTRIC-TRANSLATING DEVICE. v

Application led April 6,

My invention relates to improvements in methods and means for operatingtranslating devices, such as relays or repeaters.

The principal object ot the invention is vto provide a method and 'meansfor operating repeaters or relays in use with radio or submarinel cablereception where it is desired to operate recording or repeating devicesrom a small amount of received current. It is quite adapted, -however,to the operation of various other forms et electrical apparatusv luoperating devicesvof this character by the means and methods at presentemployed it has been found quite possible to secure receiving devices ofthe vibrating coil or similar types which will respond to receivedcurrent impulses, ot'a feeble or delicate character, but where thesereceiving devices areemployed to operate movable contacts to pass thecurrent necessary to operate other repeaters or other translating devices in a local circuit from a source ot" current supply suiiicient tooperate said translating device, serious diliiculty is found in securingthe proper contact to-pass a suilicient amount or' current to operatesuch other devices, particiilarly when rapid operation is desired. ifcurrent in suiiicient large quantities to 3o operate the relay or othercontrolling tlevice is passed through the contacts, sparking or stickingwill result or in rapid operation the contact fails with the resultingfailure. in the operation of the relay or other operating device.

In my improved' method I make use ot' the Well known principle .that achange of potential in the grid circuit of a vacuum tube will change thelow of current in the 40 plate circuit and Il accomplish this byemploying the receiving devicefor making and breaking a local-circuitincluding the grid of a vacuum rent supply to change the potential onthe grid and operate the relays orrepeaters or other apparatus bycurrent from asuitable source of supply through the plate circuit of thetube.

' By this arrangement the current passing through the contacts operatedby the receivtube with only sufficient curi923. Serial No. 630,294.

ing device -is'practically watt-less,- being measured in micro-amperes,while thellowd ot current through the Vrepeater orother devicecontrolled by the potential of the-tube 1s 1n a closed circuit Withoutc'o tadts and 55 consequently without the possi ility of sparking,stickingor other troublesWhich would result from the use of make andbreak devices in a'fecircuit having suiiicient flow 4of current tooperate said translatingdevices. 60

In the accoml'ianying drawings Fig. 1 lis a diagrammatic view showingthe circuits and' apparatus employed in I'eceiving and translatingcurrent impulsesfrom any suitablesource of supply and in 55 which avibrating coil is used tor changing the potential otthetube.

JFig. 2; is a ,similar diagrammatic view f showing the circuits andapparatus em-` ployed when used as a repeater for submarine cable andsimilar circuits.

F 3 is a view ot a dilcrent form of receiver.'

ln the said drawings a, represents a receiving device which may be ofAany suitable torni, but which in the present drawing is illustrated asa movable coil device and whichvis connected to any. suitable receivingii circuit such as radio, telegraph, submarine cable, etc. elementtypeand c is a relay'or other translating device which is to be operated inresponse to current impulses impressed on the receiver a.

al is a movable part or tongue on the receiver a adapted by the currentimpulses received on the receiver a to move against a stationary contacta which is connected by wire l to battery (Z, wire 2 to the grid b1 ofthe vacuum tube i and thence from the ila- 90 ment b2 otsaid tube bywire 3 to the tongue al. The battery (l may be ot' very small capacityin a circuit supplied with suitable resist-ance so that thel currentflow through i the contact will be reduced to the minimum, it beingnecessary only to pas-s the potential of the battery onto the grid b1.The circuit tor operating the relay or other translating' device c isfrom the plate b3 of the. tube tlirough wire 4, battery d1, wire 5,relay o,

Zi is a vacuum tube of the `three- 80 vvis l wire 6 and wire 3 to thefilament. The usual circuit for illuminating. the lfilament from thebattery Z2 is supphed,

device passing through a closed plate circuit' of the tube has nocontacting device in which sparking or sticking may-occur.

In some cases I'have found l ation may be improved by employing a shunt7 around the contacts a1 anda2 provided with resistance 8. and capacitypreferably in the form of a condenser 9'so that charging and dischargingof thecondenser will assist in the Ichange of potential on the grid in awell known manner.

In the circuit vwhich I4- have the relay c positive currentwould ilowfrom the plate to the filament whenever thev filament is illuminatedwhich would havey a tacts at all times by 'this' flow of "current, Thismay be obviated by spring tension on the armature which would preventits being operated except when the flow of current is increased by thechange of potential on the' grid.= I have shown, however, a method ofovercoming this which I have found eifec- `tive and desirable in certaincases and which consists of ap'rbattery @Z3 in a line between the lamentand grid and having resistance 10 so proportioned as to give the grid asuflicient negative potential to prevent the flow of current from thebattery d1 thus producing a zero current through the relay c except atsuch times 'as kthe potentiall of the grid b1 is changed. i

In Fig. 2 I have shown in diagram a circuit particularly adapted forrepeating impulses from submarine cables. In this case kthe circuit isduplicated, a second contact cm2 is provided on the opposite side ofvthe movable contact a1 which, in turn is connected to the grid bbl of asecond tube bb and a second repeating relay or other device ,cc isemployed in circuit with the plate circuit of said tube t?)y so that asthe tongue c is moved in one direction it will control the potential onthe grid circuitof the tube b by contact a2 and when moved inthe otherdirection it will control the potential on the tube bb by the contactwaz. As the movable coil or receiving apparatus moves in one contact tochange the potential on that the oper-4 described `for directioninresponse to a negative impulse n' corresponding to onevcode signal, oneof the translatingv devices will be operated and 4when moved intheopposite direction in re.- sponse to a positive impulse, the otherrelaywill be operated and these current impulses representing d otsanddashcsof cable code would berelayed or repeated as desired, It will beunderstood'v that any suitable form of receiverfmay be employed thatwillV respond to the received currentsimpulses. For wireless lreceptionI preferably employ la vibrating receiving device which, if ,de-

sired, may be mechanically tuned to certain frequencies asset forth ,inm pending application Ser. No. 445,968. o long asthe vibrations of thereceiver continue, the con. tact at ca will be maintained sufficientlytc control. wthe potentialA on the grid b1 and.- cause the vrelay orother device c to be. held in itsadvanced position and when theseAvibrations cease`, the relay will drop back and thus provide means forrepeating the impulses.,l One of the forms of receiving devices whichhais been successfully em- 90 yployed with this method and with thesecircuits is shown in Fig. 3 in which a vibrating reed e operated fromacoil e1 and havling a movable contact e to engage the stationarycontact es through which .the

I. .circuit through the vtube is maintained. tendency to cause 'therelay or other device; c to become magnetized andclose the con-vInasmuch as the flow of currentvto the controlling device is controlledby a change of potential which is secured by making and breaking thegrid circuit having a prac- 109 tically. wattless current, a very highmagnication ofthe current to the. relay. fromthat passing through the.contacts is secured f and inasmuch as the relay or controlling' deviceis operated in a closed circuit withl out contacts the positiveoperation of the controlling'device is secured atiall times and at highspeeds.

Having thus` described my invention,-I claim:

1. In a thermionic repeater, vacuum tubes, a receiver adapted to move inone direction in res onse to impulses ofl one polarity and in t eopposite direction in response to impulses ofopposite polarity,contacting devices operated by the movement of said receiver ineitherdirection, each of said contacting devices belng-,incircuit with1,640,749 v v g 2. In an electric circuit system, a sensi-` relay` andone sideof thefllamente of the tive primary circuit relay having doubletubes, and a local translator controlled by contacts, a `,push-pullthermionc vacuum the plate circuits of the said amplifier. 10 tubeamplifier having the respective grids v'In testimony -whereof,gI havehereunto se't 5 of the amplifier tubes connected 'to the relay-myhandthis 31st day' of March, 1923. contacts, a source of potentialconnected beL f Y tween the armature of the primary circuit, WILLIAM M.BRUCE, Jn.

